Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Umehara in Square Enix press conference

Daigo Umehara made a surprising appearance in Square Enix's press conference today, or just a few minutes ago. The event was for the announcement of light-gun shooter arcade game Gunslinger Stratos. The event was also streamed on Nico Nico.

Umehara, as a pro gamer and special guest, came on the stage to promote the game and gaming in arcade game centers. He talked to the game producer Nobuki Kadoi and it was revealed that Umehara already tried the game back in November. According to the announcer, he is "official supporter" of the game.

Gunslinger Stratos is a 4 on 4 shooter where players can choose to dual wield their guns or merge their guns to create a new form of guns. The stages are all based on real locations in Japan, and they are fully destructible. Players can save and edit their characters. The cabinets are all linked so they can compete with everyone in Japan. It will be released this Summer.

At the same time, a national tournament for the game was also announced by Square Enix president Yoichi Wada. There will be prize money, something we do not often see in a game tournament organized by a game company in Japan.

Last year, Square Enix held a national tournament for Dissidia: Final Fantasy game. The event also had a stream. It would be very interesting if they decide to get serious about fighting game, because they sure know about marketing.

Update: Japanese news sites now have a full report of the event. There are pictures of Umehara standing next to Wada, producer Kadoi, and 3 voice actors Atsushi Abe (Kamijo from To Aru Majutsu no Index), Hisako Kanemoto (Ikamusume), Kana Ueda (Rin from Fate series).